Foundation garment



Filed June 9, 1952 INVENTOR.

COR/VfZ/Ufl f/Mf United States Patent 2,698,939 FOUNDATION GARMENT Cornelius J. Geimer, Sturgis, Mich., assignor to Freeman Manufacturing Company, Sturgis, Mich., a corporation of Michigan Application June 9, 1952, Serial No. 292,469

4 Claims. (Cl. 2-39) This invention relates generally to foundation garments and refers more particularly to improvements in garments of the type having one or more lacings.

In many garments employing lacings an attempt is made to protect the wearer from the lacings by employing flaps or fly panels arranged to overlie the lacings at the inner side of the garment when the latter is applied. Such garments are not entirely satisfactory in use because it is necessary to leave one vertical edge of the panels loose in order to permit access to the lacings, and considerable difliculty has been experienced with some types of garments in preventing wrinkling or folding of the fly panels during application of the garments. This is a constant source of annoyance to the user and, in cases where the fly panels are not entirely smoothed out during application, detracts from the comfort of the garment.

With the above in view, it is an object of this invention to provide a garment wherein the fly panel or panels are maintained in proper relationship to the lacing or lacings and at the same time render the latter accessible for manipulation.

The foregoing as well as other objects will be made more apparent as this description proceeds especially when considered in connection with the accompanying drawing wherein:

Figure 1 is a front elevational view of a foundation garment embodying this invention;

Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view taken on the line 2-2 of Figure l; and

Figure 3 is a rear elevational view of the garment having the back section broken away for the sake of clearness.

The foundation garment selected for the purpose of illustration is in the form of a girdle, although it will be understood as this description proceeds that the invention may also be advantageously used in connection with practically any type of undergarment incorporating lacings.

With the above in view reference is made more in detail to the drawing wherein the numeral designates a girdle comprising a front section 11 and a rear section 12. Insofar as this invention is concerned any one of the numerous different types of available materials may be used for fabricating the garment. In the present instance the front section 11 is fashioned by sewing adjacent edges of several vertical panels 13 together and the material selected for these panels preferably possesses greater supporting characteristics than the rear section 12 of the garment. In any case the material employed in fabricating the panels 13 is somewhat elastic and is of a nature to stretch with much greater ease in a direction circumferentially of the wearer than in a vertical direction.

The rear section 12 is preferably formed of a relatively light weight material capable of stretching in all directions with much greater ease than the front section 11. As shown in Figure 2 of the drawing the rear section 12 is of suflicient length to extend across the back and around the sides or hips of the wearer. The opposite end edges of the back section 12 are separable from the adjacent edges of the front section 11 from the top of the garment to a point adjacent the bottom edge of the garment, and the lower portions 14 of the back section are stitched to the adjacent edges of the front section, as at 15.

The separable adjacent edges of the sections are connected together by lacings 16 in order to facilitate applying the garment and enable adjusting the same to the body of the wearer. Each lacing 16 comprises reinforcing strips 17 respectively sewn to adjacent edges of the sections and having eyelets 18 therein for receiving a suitable lace 19.

In order to prevent the laces 19 from contacting the 2,698,939 Patented Jan. 11, 1955 body of the wearer a pair of flaps or fly panels 20 of soft material are respectively arranged in overlying relationship to the lacings 16 at the inner side of the garment. As shown in Figure 3 of the drawing the panels 20 extend for the full length of the lacings 16 and have the front vertical edges respectively sewn to the opposite edges of the front section 11. The rear or free edges of the fly panels are free from connection to the garment and are connected adjacent opposite ends by elastic straps 21. The straps extend along the back section 12 of the garment and are of a length such that they do not interfere with applying the garment but are tensioned sufliciently during application to prevent wrinkling or folding of the fly panels 20.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. A generally annular foundation garment having a front section and having a back section, means connecting opposite side edges of the front section to the adjacent edges of the back section including adjustable lacings, fly panels arranged to respectively overlie the lacings at the inner side of the garment, said panels each having one vertical edge secured to one section of the garment to one side of the adjacent lacing and extending in opposite directions across the respective lacings, and elastic straps respectively interconnecting the free vertical edges of said fly panels adjacent opposite ends of the latter, said straps extending around the portion of the garment between the free vertical edges of said fly panels and being otherwise free from connection with the garment, the length of said straps when unstretched being somewhat less than the circumferential extent of the portion of the garment between said free vertical edges, whereby said straps are placed under tension upon application of the garment to a wearer to prevent wrinkling and folding of said fly panels.

2. The garment defined in claim 1 in which the distance around the portion of the garment between the free vertical edges of said fly panels constitutes a major portion of the entire circumferential extent of the garment.

3. A generally annular foundation garment having a front section and having a back section, adjustable means connecting opposite side edges of the front section to the adjacent edges of the back section, fly panels arranged to respectively overlie said adjustable means at the inner side of the garment, said panels each having one vertical edge secured to one section of the garment to one side of the adjacent adjustable means and extending in opposite directions across the respective adjustable means, the opposite vertical edges of said panels being free from connection to the garment, and an elastic strap interconnecting the free vertical edges of said fly panels, said strap extending around the portion of the garment between the free vertical edges of said fly panels and being otherwise free from connection with the garment, the length of said strap when unstretched being somewhat less than the circumferential extent of the portion of the garment between said free vertical edges, whereby said strap is placed under tension upon application of the garment to a wearer to prevent wrinkling and folding of said fly panels.

4. A generally annular foundation garment having sections provided with adjacent vertical edges, adjustable means connecting the adjacent vertical edges of said sections, a fly panel arranged to overlie said adjustable means at the inner side of the garment, said panel having one vertical edge secured to one section of the garment to one side of the adjustable means and extending across the adjustable means, the opposite vertical edge of said panel being free from connection to the garment, an elastic strap connected at one end to the free vertical edge of said panel, means anchoring the other end of said strap to said garment at the inner side thereof at a point spaced a substantial distance from the free vertical edge of said panel, said strap extending around the portion of the garment between the free vertical edge of said panel and said anchor means and being otherwise free from connection with the garment, the length of said strap when unstretched being somewhat less than the circumferential extent of the portion of the garment between the free vertical edge of said panel and said anchor means, whereby said strap is placed under tension upon application of the garment to a wearer to prevent wrinkling and folding of said fly panels.

(References on following page) References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Babion Dec. 29, 1903 Schweinburg Apr. 27, 1915 5 

